Management students get a lesson in the arts

At the Welingkar Institute of Management, Matunga, where marketing and finance are the buzzwords, students’ tongues are now wagging in foreign languages. The institute has introduced Spanish and Chinese (Japanese was introduced four years ago) as an optional subject.

“As India emerges on the global radar lots of people come here to work and our students go elsewhere too,” said Uday Salunkhe, the institute’s director. At the Mumbai International School of Business Bocconi, which is due to open this June, a preparatory course in Italian will be offered since the institute has a tie up with an Italian B-school.

Business schools are broadening the mandate of management education.

The FLAME School of Business in Pune, which focusses on the Liberal Arts has a business management programme where students can take courses in filmmaking, music, dance and languages.

“There is more to life than just a business education and students need exposure to various things,” said Indira Parikh, founder of FLAME.

At a meeting of Indian Institutes of Management heads in Bangalore last November, directors spoke about the importance of bringing the humanities into MBA programmes.

IIM-Ranchi will be making courses in Indian ethos and culture that were so far optional, compulsory, from June.